Act and Opponency

An “Act,” in our University language,
consists of a thesis and “disputation” thereon, covering continuous
parts of three hours. The person “disputing” with the “keeper of the
Act” is called the “opponent,” and his function is called an
“opponency.” In some degrees the student is required to keep his Act,
and then to be the opponent of another disputant. Much alteration in
these matters has been introduced of late, with other college reforms.